Fevers Are Good For Set Ups
by Nymphiase
Summary: Izaya falls ill with a high fever and Shinra decides to plan for Shizuo and Izaya to have a better relationship. He doesn't realize that his plans worked a little too well.
1. Chapter 1

Izaya's fingers tapped on his phone quickly. He didn't know what was wrong, all he knew was that he had a fever and couldn't really move from his bed. He texted Namie to pick up some paperwork, to which she responded that he was such a lazy ass. Izaya stared at his clock in his dull room.

_9:15 am… This is not a good day. Maybe I should call Shinra to drop off some medicine._

He dialed Shinra's number and waited patiently for him to pick up. When he didn't pick up, Izaya yelled out in frustration. He kept trying until he finally got through. Shinra's voice pierced through his head like a knife,

"Hello, Izaya? What's wrong? Why are you calling me? Are you alright?"

"No need to sound like you care, Shinra." Izaya responded as calmly as possible, "I need you to drop off some medicine. I have a horrible fever."

Shinra hesitated but then said, "Yeah…sure. I'll send Celty over."

"Thank you, Shinra." Izaya mumbled, feeling strange to have those words come out of his mouth. Before he hung up, he suddenly desperately called for Shinra not to hang up.

"Shinra!" Izaya yelled, "Do NOT tell anyone I'm sick, except for Celty. I don't want one of my angry clients coming at me with a gun or something."

He heard a small chuckle on the other end of the phone as Shinra reassured him that he wouldn't tell a soul.

_That's not a good sign…_

After a few minutes, Izaya peeled his eyes open to the knocking at his door. He rolled out of bed and crawled over to the door. His head felt like it was splitting with every movement he made. When he unlocked the door and let Celty in, he suddenly became lightheaded and fainted. If Celty had a head, she would have most likely yelled at the horrible state Izaya was in. She slowly lifted him up and put him back in his bed after forcefully feeding him medicine. Izaya mumbled in his sleep, sweat dripping down his forehead and his clothes sticking to him. He complained about how it was cold but it was hot at the same time. Celty didn't know what to do so she quickly texted Shinra, telling him about the situation. Shinra only responded with, "Help will soon be on the way."

Celty shook her head, feeling slightly disturbed with whatever Shinra was planning.

Shizuo's cellphone rang five times before he got angry and picked it up, "What?" He grumbled. Shinra's voice happily spoke on the other side, "Oh Shizuo! I need you to go check on Izaya after thirty minutes or so."

Shizuo couldn't believe what he was hearing. Him…visit the flea?! He was ready to believe the doctor was insane. Nevertheless, he asked, "Why?"

"Izaya's really sick. He hasn't been able to move for the whole morning and he's got this nasty fever and nothing else! Amazing, isn't it? He's hasn't even…." Shinra blabbered on and on. Shizuo tuned him out for a minute to think about how easy it would be for him to kill the flea, "…and when Celty dropped off medicine he fainted! She had to help him into be—"

"I'll go." Shizuo said and then hung up. He slowly made his way to Izaya's apartment.

Izaya awoke and threw his jacket onto the floor by his couch, then he made his way to his desk. _I have to do at least some work…_ He thought, only to fall over on his desk. His breathing was heavy, his body felt like lead. _Never mind… Back to bed I go._

Shizuo saw the flea's apartment and smiled. He couldn't wait to bash Izaya's head in and finally get rid of the little thorn in his side. When he got to Izaya's door, he knocked at first, hoping for Izaya to just open the door in all his fever confusion. There was no response and then Shizuo felt a pang of concern. He shook the feeling away and slowly turned the doorknob. It was unlocked.

Izaya heard the knocking but ignored it and slowly made his way back to his room, tripping over his own feet. He heard his door open and saw the monster of Ikebukuro standing at his entrance. Izaya felt a sense of panic, not being able to defend himself properly. He took small steps back and muttered, "Shizuo… What are you doing here?"

Shizuo smirked and walked towards him, "Shinra told me to come and check up on you. He said that you were sick, and boy was he right. You look like hell."

Izaya didn't have a comment, he just wanted to get back to his room and rest. Something about the way Izaya looked made Shizuo change his mind about killing him. His weak state made him want to take care of him and wait until he was ready to fight him. He didn't want to kill someone when they were defenseless. His expression softened and he lightly grabbed Izaya's wrist, to try and show that he didn't want to hurt him. Izaya's body stiffened, he looked at Shizuo's face searching in confusion as to why he was holding his wrist, then he sternly said, "Let go."

Shizuo didn't say anything or make a move so Izaya tried to pull his wrist away by stepping back. But of course, he ended up stepping on his jacket which was discarded just moment ago and tripped. Shizuo's grip tightened as he pulled Izaya's body towards him and his arms wrapped around his small torso to make the fall less painful for him.

Izaya lay flat on his back with his hands splayed on either side of his face. Shizuo was now on top of him leaning on his elbows so that he wouldn't crush Izaya with his superior weight. Both their faces were brushed with a light pink; Izaya's from the high fever and the embarrassment of being underneath Shizuo and Shizuo's from thinking about how clueless the flea looked underneath him.

Getting caught in the moment, Shizuo decided to slowly lean in, his hair tickling Izaya's cheeks and their lips ghosting towards each other. Izaya looked stunned but while looking into Shizuo's mocha eyes, he found himself leaning up to meet the kiss. When their lips touched, Izaya's eyes slowly closed and he became less tense. His hand held onto Shizuo's shirt for support as if the ground would sink. Shizuo closed his eyes as well and deepened the kiss. He felt Izaya's hot forehead touch his and then he pulled away.

Izaya opened his eyes and was about to ask why he pulled away but he was met with Shizuo's arms pulling him up from the ground and carrying him in his arms towards his room. He gently put Izaya down and left the room. Izaya propped himself on his elbows and watched Shizuo leave. He held his breath.

He exhaled when he saw Shizuo come back in with a wet cloth. Shizuo poked him in the chest and pushed him down so he was lying down. He placed the cloth on his forehead and stroked Izaya's hair then he crawled under the covers to lie down beside him. Izaya pressed himself against Shizuo's chest seeking his warmth and he wordlessly fell asleep.

Shizuo rubbed small circles on Izaya's back and tried thinking about how they even got to this point in the first place. He was ready to kill the flea but now he couldn't feel anything but love towards him. He buried his face into Izaya's hair and drifted off into sleep as well.

A few hours later, Izaya woke up and felt a lot better. He looked up and bumped into Shizuo's chin. Shizuo stirred awake and smiled, "Hey, how you feeling?"

"Better." Izaya whispered. He then felt himself blush as he asked, "About the…um…the kiss…"

Shizuo slowly tilted Izaya's chin towards him and kissed him on the lips as if trying to prove that the kiss before was real and that his feelings didn't suddenly change. Izaya let out a soft moan and pulled Shizuo closer to him. Izaya felt Shizuo's tongue brush against his bottom lip, asking for entrance. When Izaya opened his mouth, the door to his room burst open.

"Izaya! Are you alright? I came to check on you because I sent Shizuo over and I never heard back." Shinra yelled and then he analysed the scene, "Oh…I'll leave now, I can see you're busy."

Izaya quickly got up, "Wait, it's not like that. We're not like…like…f-fu…fuck buddies or anything." He tried to smooth out any misunderstandings.

Shizuo scratched the back of his head and yawned, "Well that's for sure. We can be, but I'm not going to move forward until the flea wants to."

"Shizu-chan, do you really mean that?" Izaya's eyes sparkled, he felt like Shizuo respected his personal space.

"Of course." He muttered, blushing slightly, not knowing that Izaya was able to make a face like that.

Shinra's smile fell apart and he just slowly left the apartment, "This is too weird for me. I shouldn't have set them up."


	2. Chapter 2

When Shinra left the apartment and the newly born couple heard Izaya's apartment door click shut, they both faced each other and let out a small laugh. Shizuo wrapped his arm around Izaya's waist and pulled him close. The blonde pressed his lips to his forehead to check his temperature. When he pulled away he happily announced, "Your temperature went down quite a lot. You were probably overworking yourself."

Shizuo froze when he saw the looks on Izaya's face. The infobroker was blushing furiously and he looked completely undone. It was as if Shizuo had broken down all of his walls and he was completely vulnerable in front of him. The blonde couldn't help but lightly cup Izaya's face and gently press a kiss to his cheeks, down to his jawline and then fully on his lips. Izaya's crimson eyes were shut as he let out a muffled moan into Shizuo's mouth.

"Let's continue what we started, shall we?" The blonde said with a smirk on his face. He gently pressed Izaya down into the mattress and kissed him harder. The brunette tried his best to kiss back in all the confusion his head and heart was giving him. He let his arms loop around Shizuo's neck and he pulled him closer, wanting to feel more of his warmth.

That's when they heard Izaya's door open again. Instead of quickly pulling away, Shizuo just growled with impatience and looked back to see who their unexpected visitor was.

_Visitors. _Shizuo silently corrected to himself. At Izaya's door stood two little girls who were none other than the Orihara twins, or the little brats as Shizuo liked to call them.

Izaya propped himself up on his elbows, his expression showed that he was clearly annoyed too and just as sexually frustrated as Shizuo.

"What do you need?" He asked with no emotion. Mairu and Kururi both looked a little shocked with the sight of their brother in bed with another man who was his nemesis. Mairu was the first to snap out of it,

"Um...I think we'll just go bleach our brains now…Let's go Kururi."

When they left the apartment, Izaya crawled out of the bed and stomped over to the door to his apartment. He locked it and then went back to his room where Shizuo was waiting. The brunette realized that now he was truly alone with Shizuo and that no one would bother them anymore. When he realized this, he suddenly felt scared. He knew what was coming next and that was sex. Izaya understood what it was and everything but it had never crossed his mind nor had he ever had sex with anyone. As he walked closer to his room, he wondered if it was too late to run away. The infobroker saw Shizuo lying down on the bed and signalling him to lie down beside him. He slowly slid under the covers with Shizuo, his hands trembling slightly.

_It's alright… He respects my personal space. If I get scared…I can say stop._ Izaya thought to himself.

Shizuo lightly kissed him and muttered, "Who do you think would be the next one to run through that door if they could?"

Izaya leaned into the kiss and let out a moan, he felt comfortable with kissing him but he still couldn't help but feel scared, "Hm…Probably Shiki-san."

Their bodies melted back into the bed as Shizuo's whispered in his ear, "Well then…We better set off a good impression." His warm hands travelled up and under his shirt and it was thrown off of him in a split second. Shizuo slowly unbuttoned his shirt and soon that too was tossed somewhere on the floor. Izaya's hands began to tremble even more. He placed them on Shizuo's shoulders to try and stop them from shaking but he couldn't deny the fact that he was scared. The blonde quickly noticed that Izaya was shaking so he stopped and moved off of him. He let his hand hold onto his and he asked,

"Never done it before?"

Izaya shook his head and held onto Shizuo's hand tighter, hoping he would understand and that he wouldn't leave him for being inexperienced with this sort of thing. The blonde stared at him with his mocha and smiled,

"Me neither. Besides, I told you that I wouldn't move forward until you're ready. I'm not going to randomly strip you down and take you."

The brunette let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding, he leaned into Shizuo's chest and whispered a small thank you. Then they both drifted to sleep.


	3. Chapter 3

The next day, Izaya woke up without Shizuo lying down beside him. He looked around the room, almost ready to believe that yesterday was a dream until he noticed a note on his bedside drawer. It read:

_Sorry I had to leave early. Tom needed me to go debt collecting. It's a shame I can't cook you a decent breakfast so there's a plate of hell waiting for you in the kitchen. Enjoy my cooking. I'll see you later in Ikebukuro, right? We can talk or go somewhere together if you want. Shinra called me earlier and said he wanted to talk with us. I don't know what he wants though. Don't sleep in too much. Good luck with your secretary._

_Love you,_

_Shizuo._

Izaya smiled at the note and moved towards the kitchen where he saw a traditional Japanese breakfast set out for him. _Can't cook my ass, this looks good._ Izaya thought as he sat down. Once he finished breakfast, which was actually really good, he quickly changed and sat down by his desk. He looked at a few pieces of paper and then slammed his forehead onto the desk. It hadn't even been a few hours and he missed Shizuo. He didn't want to waste time doing work. He really wanted to spend more of his time with his boyfriend. The infobroker grabbed his jacket and ran out of his apartment to search for the blonde.

Shizuo was collecting debts when he saw a limo park beside him. When the window rolled down, he saw his brother signalling him to talk with him. The blonde leaned on the window and asked Kasuka what was wrong.

"I heard from a specific doctor that you were dating someone and I would like to know who." He said with no expression.

The blonde blinked innocently and cursed Shinra for telling his brother. "Kasuka, I'm working right now so how about we meet up at Shinra's in a few minutes. He said he wanted to talk with me anyway. I'll bring my…relationship partner too."

The actor just nodded and continued on his way. Shizuo sighed and then felt two arms wrap around him from behind. The blonde quickly turned around and saw a mess of dark brown hair nuzzled into his chest.

"Izaya, what are you doing?" He asked. He was slightly irritated but he couldn't help but smile at how the infobroker clung to him. The blonde steered both of them to the nearest alleyway without catching Tom's eye. He ruffled Izaya's hair and waited for him to say something.

"I missed you." Izaya mumbled.

"I wasn't away for that long." Shizuo chuckled.

"I still missed you." The brunette exclaimed. When he pulled away he asked Shizuo about when they were seeing Shinra.

The blonde held his hand, "Actually, we should go see him now. Kasuka said he wanted to know who I was dating too. I don't really mind being open about it so I hope we can just walk around while holding hands in public, unless you're embarrassed."

Izaya shook his head furiously, "No! No. I'm perfectly fine with that." He held his hand tighter and they walked out back to the busy city together.

The moment they stepped out, a few people glanced at their intertwined fingers. Some people whispered about how they were supposed to be enemies. Tom just gaped like a fish.

"Tom-san, can I take some time off for a while?" Shizuo asked his boss who just nodded slowly trying to understand what was happening.

The couple walked slowly to Shinra's house, talking about their likes and dislikes. Both of them figured out that they knew each other pretty well for people who were sworn enemies. When they got to the doctor's apartment, they both looked at each other.

"I hope your brother doesn't hate me." Izaya muttered.

"I hope my brother doesn't hate you too." Shizuo replied. Then the blonde wrapped an arm around the brunette's waist and pulled him closer, his head leaning down. Izaya stood on his toes and leaned up. Their lips locked in a passionate kiss. When they pulled away, Shizuo knocked on Shinra's door.

Celty was the one to answer. When she saw them, she pulled out her cell and typed out, "Come in! We were waiting for you two. Kasuka is here too."

Izaya nervously walked in, he didn't know why but it felt like he was getting permission to marry Shizuo or something. The moment Kasuka saw Izaya, he glared daggers at him and then he looked down to where his hand held his brother's. Shizuo's grip only tightened on Izaya's hand when he felt the brunette get tense.

The blonde only ignored his brother and asked the underground doctor, "So…What did you want to talk about?"

Shinra pointed at them, "I want to talk about how **that** even happened!"

Shizuo raised an eyebrow in confusion, "'**That**'?"

The doctor nodded, "Yes 'that'!"

"I'm sorry, I don't understand what you're trying to tell me." Shizuo replied.

Kasuka sat down on the couch and said, "Oh brother, I'm pretty sure you **know** what we're talking about. Don't act dumb. Why are you holding that man's hand?"

Izaya froze in his place and stared at the ground, _he doesn't accept me…he doesn't accept me…_ He thought to himself over and over again.

Shizuo looked down at his younger brother, "You don't accept Izaya?" He asked with a calm voice.

The actor crossed his legs and said, "No, I don't. In fact, he disgusts me."

The crimson-eyed man flinched slightly at the hurtful words. He knew what was coming next. Shizuo would break up with him. There's no way he could get in the way of their brotherly love.

The blonde let go of Izaya's hand and crossed his arms, "So…what? You want me to break up with him?"

_He's going to do it. He's done with me. Good bye to my boyfriend who didn't last one day with me. _Izaya thought. He felt tears burning the back of his eyes.

Shizuo's temper snapped when Kasuka said, "Yes, break up with him now."

"No, I refuse to break up with him. What kind of person are you? What kind of person says rude things about someone else's relationship? I don't even care if you're family. That doesn't give you the right to throw shit in Izaya's face. You're worried about my image or my reputation, aren't you? You're worried that people will look down on me because I'm dating a man. A real man doesn't care what comes his way. A real man would deal with it. Hell, you're probably worried that he'll give me tons of shit. Well, he won't. Izaya's is pretty fucking harmless when you get to know him. He works, he eats, and he sleeps. He's like you; a human. He functions like a human like everyone else. He's not some monster that you see him as. You know what; maybe you're even worried that I'll love him more than you. Is that right? Kasuka, as much as I love you as a brother, I can't stand to see your face right now."

Kasuka uncrossed his legs, stood up and walked towards Shizuo. When he was standing face to face with his brother, he raised his hand. Izaya was the first to notice what the actor was going to do. The infobroker quickly stepped in between the two, not wanting to cause any more trouble. Kasuka's raised hand slapped Izaya across the face. Celty, Shinra and Shizuo stood frozen. The younger brother looked slightly shocked that Izaya had taken the slap for Shizuo. The crimson-eyed man stared the actor straight in the eyes and gave a small smile,

"You shouldn't try and hit your brother. You'll get in trouble, ne~?"

Kasuka's eye twitched and he said, "Who would I get in trouble with, hm? You can't touch me. Anything I do to my brother shouldn't be a problem to you."

"Oh? But it **is** a problem to me, dear Kasuka. You see, I'm in a relationship with Shizuo now and that makes him my problem. If he's my problem, all of his problems are mine too. You should also know, I have my ways of getting to people. Watch your back, little actor, you'll never know when the next set of stage lights fall on you." Izaya didn't mean it but his voice was filled with evil that made everyone in the room believe him.

Kasuka smirked, "You've got guts. I can see why Shizuo likes you; you're not scared of him are you?"

"No, I'm not scared of him. If I were scared of my own boyfriend I wouldn't date him." Izaya said more calmly.

The actor let took a deep breath and then said, "I'll accept you for now. If you hurt my brother though, I'll come after you." With that Kasuka left the apartment, leaving Shinra, Celty, Shizuo and Izaya speechless in the room.

That was when they saw a sight that nobody saw before. Izaya's eyes were wide and they glistened with tears. Shinra panicked and told Celty to bring a box of tissues, "IZAYA?! Are you** crying**?!"

"Eh?" Izaya lifted his hand to his cheek and it came off wet, "Ah, I'm not crying. This is just from the amount of stress I was under while in that position."

Celty handed him a tissue and the doctor confirmed, "So…in other words, you're crying."

"I'm not crying!" Izaya exclaimed. Shizuo turned Izaya's head and took a look at his cheek which was getting pink from Kasuka's slap.

"Are you alright?" The blonde asked with a worried look on his face. When Izaya nodded, Shizuo pulled him in for a hug.

"At least the worst is done and over with." Shinra said, "There's no one else to come out to. Izaya's parents don't exactly want to see him. Shizuo's parents both passed and Izaya's sisters don't care as long as Izaya can still provide them shopping money."

The infobroker leaned up to kiss Shizuo, completely oblivious to what Shinra was telling them. The blonde kissed back and then said, "Well, with everything out of the way, this should be the official start of a beautiful relationship."

They wrapped their arms around each other for another kiss.


	4. Chapter 4

"I quit."

"Excuse me? No one quits on me. I fire people, not let them quit."

"That makes me the first then, Shiki-san."

Shiki sighed and leaned forward, "Listen Izaya, do you really think I would let my best infobroker quit on me? I don't care if I have to trap you here forever. You're not quitting."

A few days earlier.

"Shizu-chan!" Izaya whined, "Let's go on a date!"

"A date?!" Shizuo exclaimed.

"It doesn't even have to be somewhere meaningful We can just take a trip to Shinra's apartment if you want. I just want to go somewhere with you." Izaya said. It's been a week since the "Kasuka incident" and their relationship didn't progress at all. The brunette wanted something to happen. It didn't matter what, as long as it sparked their life a little bit. Shizuo bit his lip and scratched the back of his head,

"I've…never gone on a date before so I'm not sure how I'm supposed to set this up."

Izaya laughed a little at his boyfriend and then said, "That's fine. How about we go eat out tonight? We can go to Russian Sushi."

The blonde nodded in agreement. Before Shizuo set off to work, he would always linger by Izaya's side until he got a light peck on the cheek and a, "Come home safely." And when Shizuo came back, Izaya would always be there to jump into his arms, kiss him and say, "Welcome back."

Shinra always said that they acted like a married couple, but he figured they were happy with the way they were.

When they were just about to set off for Russian Sushi, Izaya's cellphone rang. The brunette looked at Shizuo with sadness in his eyes and the blonde knew exactly what it meant. Shiki was calling him. And if Izaya's boss was calling him, he knew that there wouldn't be time for their relationship. Shizuo sighed and told him to pick it up and that they could go out another time. The brunette almost looked as if he was going to cry as he nodded and flipped his phone open.

"What?" Izaya grumbled.

"Well…someone's on their man period." Shiki responded.

"How may I be of service, Shiki-san?" Izaya asked as calmly as possible. Sure, he was irritated with his boss ruining his date before it even started but his boss was his boss and his job was his job. What the boss says; goes.

"I need you to gather information from this man in another country."

Izaya hesitated and remembered that he swore he wouldn't leave the country while he was dating Shizuo, "Uh…Shiki-san…I can't."

"You can't? Or you won't?" His voice sounded like he was trying hard not to snap at Izaya.

The brunette and held his breath, he glanced at the blonde and then whispered so that Shiki-san was the only one to hear, "I'll come over right now."

He heard Shiki sigh on the other end as he said, "Fine."

When Shiki hung up, Izaya turned to Shizuo and smile, "I'm sorry Shizu-chan... I'm going to go over and tell Shiki that I'm going to quit being an informant for a while. I really don't want to waste time anymore. I want to spend more time with you. So please…wait for me."

The blonde chuckled and ruffled Izaya's hair, "Idiot, I'll always be waiting for you. Come back soon, okay?" He kissed the informant on the wrist and let him be off on his way.

When Izaya got to Shiki's apartment and told him he wanted to quit, Shiki got his bodyguards to keep him locked up. The brunette panicked and pulled out his pocketknife. He pointed it at the guards who were slowly approaching him and made his way towards the door. The guards quickly jumped him, muffled his screams, drugged him and then dragged him off to Shiki's room.


	5. Chapter 5

Shizuo knew it was normal for Izaya to come home late sometimes when he had a job to do with Shiki but he wouldn't be 7 hours late when he went to tell Shiki he was going to quit. The blonde called him on his cellphone a few times until someone finally picked up,

"Izaya? Where are you? Are you alright?"

A laugh came from the other side as the man said, "I honestly didn't believe it when he said it but the monster of Ikebukuro really must be dating the great Orihara Izaya then. You called him seven times, that must mean something. Tell me how important he is to you and I might let him go."

Shizuo growled, he was beyond angry, his rage was pouring out and he wanted to strangle someone with it, "Shiki…" He hissed, "What did you do to Izaya?"

"Now now, I should be the ones asking you questions. Izaya is perfectly fine, he's just drugged. I'm not going to **do** anything to him, I just want some answers and perhaps a bargain. Are you the reason why Izaya wanted to quit?"

"I guess so. He said he wanted to spend more time with me and that he wanted to take a break from begin an informant for a while." Shizuo answered obediently.

"Ah…young love. Are you willing to risk your life to save Izaya?" Shiki asked.

"Yes."

"Oh. What a straight answer. Are you willing to let Izaya go if it meant to save his life?"

Shizuo hesitated and then asked, "What do you mean by 'let Izaya go'?"

Shiki laughed slightly and said, "To leave him. Forever."

The blonde couldn't speak anymore. If it were to save Izaya's life then he would leave him but he couldn't deny the fact that he needed the brunette as much as Izaya needed him. "Are you asking me to leave him forever?" Shizuo asked carefully.

"Maybe. I'm thinking about it. I can always cut off a finger or two but I want to do something that would tear Izaya apart." Shiki paused for a moment then asked, "Last time I talked with Izaya, he was a virgin. How about now, hm? Can you answer that, Mr. Strongest Man in Ikebukuro-san?"

Shizuo's grip on the phone tightened, he breathed in slowly to make sure he wouldn't crush the phone to small pieces. "Don't you dare touch him." His voice was filled with malice as he spat out the words to Shiki.

"That all depends on how you behave, 'Shizu-chan'." Shiki teased the blonde with Izaya's nickname for him and Shizuo finally snapped.

He yelled and kicked the couch, sending it flying across the room. He listened for any orders from the other end of the phone as he ran towards Shiki's apartment. He stopped dead in his tracks when he heard someone whimper on the other end.

"Izaya? Izaya?! Is that you?" Shizuo cried out in desperation. A weak voice responded,

"Shizu-chan… Don't come to the apartment. Please, don't. Just stay where you are."

"Izaya?! What happened?" The blonde listened to the pain in Izaya's voice and he quickly turned towards Shinra's apartment.

"Don't come here. Don't go anywhere. Whatever you do, please, don't come here." Suddenly Izaya's voice yelled into the phone, "It's a trap! It's a trap! Shizu-chan! No! Stop!"

The blonde kicked Shinra's door open and then heard the line go dead. He flipped his phone shut and called for Celty. The headless rider ran towards the broken man and lead him to the couch, she typed on her phone as quickly as possible, "What happened?"

As Shizuo explained the situation, Celty moved towards her motorcycle and signalled Shizuo to get on as well. She typed on her phone again and it said, "I'll help you find him. We'll get him back no matter what. Izaya's got tough skin, he'll be fine."

They sped through the darkness and then Shizuo's phone rang again. The blonde immediately picked up and he heard Shiki's rough voice, "I know what I'm going to take away from you, 'Shizu-chan'."

The blonde growled, "Tell me so I can bash your head in twice as hard."

Shiki just laughed and said, "His virginity."

A cannon ball seemed to fall in Shizuo's stomach remembering how Izaya trembled at the mere thought of sex. As much as he wanted to hang up, he kept the phone pressed against his ear.

As Celty sped through the streets, Shizuo sat silently, listening to Izaya's screams. Never once did Izaya moan, the brunette had always called for Shizuo to save him and never did he beg Shiki for anything. The blonde breathed heavily while listening to Izaya's pain, he suddenly felt tears rolling down his cheeks from frustration. When Celty and Shizuo arrived to Shiki's apartment, the blonde ran in and stormed straight to Shiki's room. Celty kept both of them protected from any guards as they infiltrated the apartment.

The blonde hung up on Shiki, now being able to hear Izaya's screams clearly in every hallway. Rage blinded him when he got to Shiki's door. He punched the door off its hinges and pushed Shiki off of Izaya. The brunette was lying down on the bed, his lower regions defiled. He slowly came back to his senses when he felt a blanket wrap around him. Celty's arms curled around his frail body as he watched Shizuo punch Shiki over and over again.

Izaya's eyes widened when he realized that Shizuo would kill Shiki if nobody stopped him. The brunette jumped up and hugged Shizuo's torso tightly. His legs were wobbling and his vision was hazy, but he knew that he had to calm the blonde down.

"Izaya…let go of me." Shizuo muttered, holding Shiki by the collar. The informant's boss had already fallen unconscious yet it didn't matter to Shizuo. The brunette held on tighter and said,

"Shizuo, don't kill him." Izaya said weakly, his voice hoarse.

"Let. Go." The blonde said with more force. Celty stood by the door, knowing that Izaya would be able to handle it.

"I don't want you to go to jail for murdering someone!" Izaya said with a sob, "I don't want you to leave me for killing someone so worthless! I want you to stay by my side. I'm not hurt Shizuo. Look at me."

Shizuo's eyes were glued to Shiki's bloodied face. Izaya lightly placed a hand on the blonde's face and turned it towards him, "Shizuo…Look at me. There's not a scratch on me. I'm fine."

The blonde looked down at Izaya's naked body, tears slowly forming in his eyes. "Izaya...I'm sorry. I couldn't save you."

"You did save me Shizuo. I'm alive, aren't I? Let's go home. I don't think Shiki will be looking for me anymore." Izaya felt himself getting lifted off the ground as Shizuo lightly planted a kiss on his lips.

"I'll carry you to Shinra's to get you checked. You're in pain, I can tell. I heard your screams." He dropped Shiki's body and slowly cradled Izaya in his arms.

The moment Izaya felt safe, he fainted.


	6. Chapter 6

While Shinra checked Izaya's condition, Celty sat beside Shizuo on the couch. The blonde's head rested in his hands. His eyes were shut tightly as he muttered to himself, "I couldn't protect him. Worthless, useless. I can't do anything right."

When Shinra came out he sighed and sat down on the couch with Shizuo, then he said, "He should be physically fine. He'll probably feel a sharp pain whenever he sits and his hips are going to hurt for a while but it's not anything permanent. I don't know if he'll ever be mentally fine. He obviously wasn't prepared to be raped any time in his life so you'll have to give it a while."

Shizuo nodded and stood up. His hand rested on the doorknob to the room where Izaya was sleeping. He didn't know if he was prepared to see him but he knew that Izaya had endured a lot more for him so he slowly opened the door.

Izaya's face was peaceful; Shiki didn't kiss or leave any marks on him. It was just his lower regions that had been taken. Shizuo sat down beside the bed and lightly brushed Izaya's hair. He whispered apologies over and over again. Eventually his head rested on the brunette's lap and he fell asleep.

When the brunette's eyes fluttered open, he immediately tried to get up, only to lie down again after feeling sore in his hips. He looked down when he felt something stir in his lap and smiled at the blonde. Izaya eventually got himself into a sitting position and this time he was the one to stroke Shizuo's hair. The blonde seemed to be having a nightmare, even in his sleep he apologized for not being able to take care of Izaya. The brunette whispered to Shizuo in his sleep,

"It's alright Shizu-chan. I'm fine. I'll be fine."

Mocha eyes opened to meet his crimson eyes. They stared at each other in the darkness and then Shizuo slowly got up to caress Izaya's face. The brunette only leaned in and lightly brushed his lips against Shizuo's. The blonde shivered at the feelings that shook him with that small kiss. He let the kiss deepen and then he fell on top of Izaya on the bed. The brunette winced slightly from the pain in his hips but he lovingly wrapped his arms around Shizuo and held onto him tightly.

"I'm sorry." Shizuo whispered in his ear.

"It wasn't your fault Shizu-chan." Izaya said while rubbing the blonde's back, "I should have been more careful. Let's sleep this off, hm? Forget about this. You will always be my first Shizuo. It doesn't matter who was before you, in my mind, you'll always **always** be first. My first kiss, my first date, my first time and my first love."

At that, the blonde couldn't speak anymore, he wrapped an arm around Izaya's waist and pulled him closer to him. They both fell asleep, Shizuo's arms protecting Izaya and Izaya snuggling closer to Shizuo.

The next morning, Shizuo carried Izaya back to his apartment and spent the whole day taking care of him. The brunette seemed very distant that day, he stared out his window with his chin resting on the palm of his hand. He seemed normal when he was talking with Shizuo but when he was alone, he was lost in thought. In the middle of the night, Izaya would sometimes wake up screaming or crying. The blonde would then cradle him and whisper to him, "It's alright, I'm right here. I've got you. I'm not leaving you."

When Izaya's physical injuries healed, the couple decided to go on a date that wouldn't be ruined like the other one. Since the brunette wasn't ready for anything that used too much energy, they decided to just go to the park. They walked hand in hand through the crowd. When they got to the park, they sat down on a bench and stared at the sky.

"Shizu-chan?"

"Hm?"

"I love you."

The blonde blushed furiously and he faced Izaya, "Where did that come from?!"

Izaya continued to look up at the sky and explained himself, "When I was trapped by Shiki, I realized that I love you so much to the point I would die for you. I didn't want my life to end without seeing your face again. I kept thinking to myself, 'I can't die here. I have to live to be with you until the end'. So…I just wanted to let you know that I love you."

Shizuo smiled and lightly ruffled the brunette's hair, "I love you too."

Their relationship smoothed out and eventually, both of them forgot that Shiki even existed. Until Izaya got a text message a few days later from Shinra that said,

"Come to my apartment now! It's Shizuo…of course he'll live with his inhuman strength, but still, someone was marking him."

The informant quickly texted back asking what happened.

"He's been shot."


	7. Chapter 7

_Just wanted to say stuff before the chapter starts. Heh_

_Thank you so much for the reviews. It keeps my brain working. Gets more ideas in my head. Feel free to suggest writing prompts, I'd be happy to write them if I have time. Though…I'm slightly scared of writing smut. Never done it. Don't know if I will. I might if you guys want it._

_Enjoy chapter 7. _

Shizuo's been shot? No way. Impossible. This wasn't happening.

Izaya didn't even bother grabbing his coat; his hand squeezed around his cellphone and he immediately ran towards Shinra's apartment. The brunette sprinted through the waves of people, completely oblivious to those he was knocking down. He fidgeted on the subway train, being too impatient to wait. He made a small note to self that he should move in with Shizuo so they'd be living in Ikebukuro instead of Shinjuku.

When he got to Shinra's apartment, his eyes widened in fear and anger when he spotted Shiki alone by the entrance. The informant approached the man with more caution, hands slipping into his pocket to feel the groove of his pocketknife. Shiki raised his hands as if he was surrendering, "I've already done what needed to be done. I admit, I shot him. Me. Not my guards or my other subjects. I shot him because I simply held a grudge and I'm ready for whatever you want to do to me as a punishment."

"You're…giving up?" Izaya asked in disbelief.

"Yes. I brought no guards with me and no weapons. Punch me or kick me. Just make sure you don't kill me or you'll cause trouble. Then, we'll go our separate ways and that'll be that." Shiki said.

"I don't believe you." The brunette spat as he made his way to brush past his former boss and into the apartment. But Shiki continued to stand in his way.

"Izaya, I know you've been wanting to do something to me and I'm giving you this one chance to take it, yet you won't."

Izaya looked at Shiki in the eyes, his glare froze his former boss in his place, "You want me to hit you or something so you won't feel as guilty. The proud Shiki is feeling guilty. Ha! You can just live like this. I don't care. Shizuo and I are fine."

Shiki laughed a bit, "You think you're fine after what I did to you?" He then sighed and moved out of Izaya's way, "I won't get in your way anymore. Your relationship causes too many problems for the world."

The brunette didn't say anything else. He walked past Shiki and pounded his fist on Shinra's door. Celty opened it and gestured for him to come in. Shizuo was sitting on the couch with blood covering his shirt and his pants. Shinra was fixing up his leg and Izaya saw a bandage wrapped around his stomach. The informant ran towards the blonde and hugged him. Shizuo let out a small laugh and wrapped one arm around Izaya to pat his back. When the two pulled away, Izaya finally let his tears out. He had been so focused on getting to Shinra's apartment that he had never had time to react to the situation. Shizuo smiled softly at his teary eyed boyfriend,

"You've been crying a lot ever since you started dating me. Where did the great Orihara Izaya go? The one who is never broken or shaken. I'll be fine Izaya. But I don't know who shot me."

The informant was prepared to tell Shizuo that it was Shiki but he thought better of it and figured Shizuo would just cause more trouble with Shiki if he knew. Izaya slowly calmed down in the corner of the apartment while Shizuo was being treated. His thoughts ran wild in his head as he remembered what Shiki had said.

"Your relationship causes too many problems in the world…" Izaya mumbled quietly to himself. He didn't know what it meant but he felt hurt after hearing those words. He didn't want their relationship to cause problems or worry people. The two monsters of Ikebukuro were finally at peace with each other. Wasn't that good enough?

When Izaya and Shizuo were getting ready to go back to Izaya's apartment, the brunette suggested the idea that they stay at Shizuo's apartment for a while. "It's closer to work for you and I want to see where you live."

"Well…Alright then. It's not as big as your apartment but it's still home." Shizuo replied.

While they were walking under the night sky, they heard many movements within the city. The Yellow Scarves and the Dollars had decided to work together due to the friendship between their leaders and the Slasher was dormant for a long time. It was like Ikebukuro had no news going on, which meant new news was going to come up soon.

Shizuo's apartment was surprisingly clean, it was spotless actually. Izaya was overwhelmed with Shizuo's scent which filled every corner of the room. He walked over to the couch in the middle of the living room and fell face forward onto it. He took a deep breath of exhaustion.

The blonde let the informant dose off while he made dinner. When dinner was ready, he crawled on top of Izaya and pinned his arms above his head. Then the blonde kissed his neck.

The feeling woke the brunette and he let out a small yelp. Shizuo lightly nipped at Izaya's neck and then planted soft kisses afterwards. The brunette suddenly let out a loud gasp followed by a moan when Shizuo sucked at a small part on his neck. Shizuo stopped and looked at Izaya with a raised eyebrow,

"Sensitive neck, hm? I didn't know that."

Izaya blushed heavily and tried to pull his arms out of Shizuo's grasp. He let out a stream of excuses, "Get off. Dinner is going to get cold!"

The blonde chuckled and let go of him, "You're right. Besides, now I know your weak point."

Izaya clapped a hand over his neck protectively and then made his way over to the dinner table.

After dinner, Shizuo threw Izaya onto the bed and kissed him softly which eventually turned into both of them devouring each other. The brunette muttered an apology and the blonde asked what it was for.

"I'm sorry because I'm probably holding you back" Izaya explained vaguely.

"Holding me back from what?" Shizuo asked, still greatly confused. Izaya covered his face, a wild blush dusting his cheeks,

"Holding you back from having s-sex."

The blonde laughed and then hugged Izaya, "I'm not some sex craving monster you know. I have self-control. If you're not ready then you're not ready. That's all there is to it. How many time do I have to repeat myself before you get it?"

The next morning Izaya crawled out of bed to take a shower. When he looked in the mirror he saw a dark red mark on his neck. He examined it further and then remembered what Shizuo had done yesterday to his neck. The brunette ran out of the bathroom and yelled at the sleeping blonde,

"You marked me! Shizu-chan! I can't cover this with my fucking shirt! Wake up! You sex craving monster! What am I going to do with this?!"

Shizuo grumbled and turned around to face Izaya, then he smiled and said, "You trying to seduce me? You know, standing half naked with my kiss mark on your neck is pretty sexy."

The brunette blushed and ran back into the bathroom to finish his shower. Shizuo smiled to himself as if he had accomplished a life goal. The blonde blushed and mumbled to himself, "I should mark him more often. That reaction was way too cute."


	8. Chapter 8

Jealousy is cruel. People are never sure if it means that you care for a person of if you don't trust that person enough. Its meaning confuses people, especially those in a relationship. In the end, it depends on what kind of person you're dating.

Izaya was jealous. He wasn't even jealous of a human being. He was jealous of a dullahan. The informant never minded Shizuo taking time out of his day to talk with Celty but the more their relationship progressed, the more he felt a small pull in his chest; only the informant didn't realize it was jealousy. Izaya leaned forward so his forehead touched his desk. He sighed and muttered to himself,

"Shizu-chan, when are you getting here?"

Namie walked into the room and placed a pile of paperwork in front of the brunette, "Stop daydreaming and get to work."

Izaya whined and then picked up the piece of paper on the top of the pile. After reading for a few minutes, he groaned and rested his head on his desk again.

Namie scowled and slammed her hand on the desk, which made Izaya jump in surprise. His secretary said, "If you're going to be jealous that your boyfriend is with that headless rider, you might as well end you relationship and focus on work. Just because you stopped working for Shiki, that doesn't mean all your clients disappeared."

Izaya's ears perked up when he realized he was being lectured. He stood up and defended himself, "Come on Namie, I'll get my work done and I'm not jealous."

"You're jealous." Namie argues back, "Your eyes say it all."

A few days later, Izaya was woken up due to Namie's harsh screams, "I told you to get your work done! I'm not your maid! I'm not going to do every single thing for you."

The brunette lazily got up, noticing that the blonde wasn't by his side. Izaya wrinkled his nose in confusion. There was no note left for him either. "I'm sorry Namie, I'll get to it right away."

His secretary watched the slightly depressed informant do his work. Izaya didn't talk for the rest of the day. When Shizuo came back home, he walked straight into the shower then straight to bed, leaving the brunette without his welcome home kiss.

As the days passed, Izaya slowly fell apart. His feelings began eating away at him and he wasn't experienced with having his world fall apart. The informant did his work without any thought to it and eventually his secretary started to feel slightly worried.

"Izaya…Maybe you should take a break."

"From work?" The brunette asked, uninterested in the topic.

"From work and from your relationship. It's not only causing trouble for you but it's worrying me and I don't like worrying about an idiot like you."

Izaya laughed a bit then his smile faded to a frown, "I don't know. I still love Shizuo, my feelings haven't changed. But I feel like he might be bored of me."

"Bored of you?! What do you mean by that? You're insane, nothing about insane is boring." Namie exclaimed.

Izaya's smile returned for a brief moment, "Haha, thanks. But to tell you the truth, we haven't had sex. He said we wouldn't do it unless I'm comfortable with it and I'm not. I'm terrified of it. So I'm just wondering if maybe he's bored of me."

"I don't think Shizuo is someone who would love for your body. He hasn't been able to have a relationship because of his inhuman strength. He was afraid of living anyone. So if he ever did love, I think it would be true." Namie explained.

Izaya smiled again, "Thanks. You know, you're really useful when you're not being a bitch."

The secretary shook off the comment but smiled at the fact that she had helped him somehow. Izaya continued to think about the blonde; the thought of breaking up scared him but leaving things the way they were didn't seem like the best idea either. The informant let out a sigh and mumbled to himself, "I'll decide in the morning."

That night, Izaya's nightmare shook his mind and heart. It all started with him telling Shizuo that he was jealous.

_Izaya held onto Shizuo's hand as the blonde was just about to leave the apartment._

"_Wait, Shizuo-chan." His voice seemed to lose the power that he once had._

"_What is it?" The blonde asked._

_The brunette looked down at Shizuo's shoes and then quickly looked up to stare him in the eyes, "Do you even love me anymore?"_

_Shizuo raised his eyebrow in confusion, "Where did this question come from?"_

_Izaya looked down at the floor again, feeling slightly embarrassed, "You're always talking with Celty and you never talk to me about your problems. You stopped giving me 'come home safely' and 'welcome back' kisses. It's like you've stopped caring for me."_

_The blonde pulled his hand away from Izaya's loose grip, "That's how you feel? You're jealous? Well then, maybe we should just break—"_

Izaya shot awake. He was 100% sure that in his dream they were about to break up. Unless dream Shizuo was going to say, "we should just break a house." But that obviously wasn't possible. The troubled informant slowly got up and rubbed his eyes. He looked back and saw Shizuo sleeping beside him. Izaya rubbed his eyes again, thinking that he was probably hallucinating. But the blonde was really there.

"Oh right…today's his holiday." Izaya mumbled to himself.

He leaned forward and lightly placed his hand on Shizuo's cheek. The blonde's face was calm and at peace; it made Izaya want to lie down and fall asleep again. He snuggled closer to the blonde and tried to memorize the warmth pulsing off of him.

When Shizuo woke up, he noticed that Izaya's arms were wrapped around his torso and his head was leaning against his chest. The blonde smiled softly and put his own arm around Izaya. The brunette stirred in his sleep, "Morning Izaya."

"Hm? Good morning."

"We have to talk." The blonde calmly said.

Izaya's whole body froze as he nodded and nervously said, "Sure…"

They both got dressed and then Shizuo grabbed Izaya's hand and led them out of the apartment. The informant followed and wondered where they were going but then he realized they were taking the route to Shinra's apartment. Izaya stopped dead in his tracks and asked the blonde,

"Why are we going to Shinra's?"

"Who said we were going to Shinra's? We could be going somewhere else." Shizuo said while avoiding the question.

"You've been talking with Celty a lot lately. Every day you're with her. It's obvious we're going to Shinra's. What business do we have there anyway? You said you wanted to talk to me, so talk!" Izaya raised his voice, fearing that his nightmare would come true.

Shizuo looked confused, "What do you mean?"

The brunette threw his arms up in frustration and yelled, "I'm jealous, Shizu-chan! I'm jealous that you spend more time with Celty than me. I'm jealous that I can't be the one you want to talk to. I'm so fucking jealous that it hurts."

The blonde's expression crumbled as Izaya told him this. He opened his mouth to talk but the informant continued, "I don't want to be in this sort of pain. I've gotten weak because of you. I've gone insane with the fact that I love you and because I've gone insane with love, I think we should break up."

As the words spilled from his mouth, Izaya realized that what he feared had just came true and he himself had caused it. At that moment, he also realized that the damage was done. He stared wide eyed at his own hands, as if he had just committed a crime.

The blonde looked at Izaya, his face showing no expression, and then he said,

"Don't say things you don't mean, Izaya."


	9. Chapter 9

"Don't say things you don't mean, Izaya."

The blonde's voice was serious and it had a hard edge to it that sent shivers down Izaya's spine. The brunette tightly shut his eyes, _the damage is done, I can't take it back now. Just go along with it._ He thought to himself.

"I mean it, Shizu-chan."

Shizuo shook his head and took a step towards Izaya, who then took two steps away from the blonde.

"Izaya…you're confusing yourself. You just told me you were insane because of how much you love me and now you want to break up."

The informant knew he wasn't making sense but he didn't know how to fix it. He figured that they were over now and he had to leave fast. Izaya turned to run but Shizuo grabbed his wrist and pulled him into his embrace. The blonde muttered into his ear, "If you're going to break up with me, don't cry while doing it, idiot."

The brunette felt comforted in Shizuo's arms and he noticed that he was indeed crying. He didn't know when the tears had started to fall but now they couldn't stop.

"Shizuo… I can't do this anymore. I need to do my work and when I'm dating you, I can't work at all." Izaya said slowly.

The blonde just gave a small smile and then said, "So you don't want to break up; you want to separate for a while."

The informant looked at Shizuo in confusion, "There was a difference between those two?"

"Yeah. I learned about it yesterday. Breaking up is when the relationship is over and the romantic tie is cut off. Separating for a while is when they need to take time for themselves and do whatever. So which one do you wish to do?"

Izaya lifted his gaze to meet Shizuo's mocha eyes. The brunette couldn't understand his own feelings anymore. He tried to smile at the blonde. Which only led to a broken sob with a weak smile.

Shizuo couldn't stand seeing Izaya so confused and hurt. The informant kept his eyes locked on Shizuo's and then he leaned up on his toes. The blonde instantly understood what it meant; he wrapped his arms around Izaya's waist and pulled him up. Their lips crashed together in a slow and passionate kiss.

When Izaya pulled away, he whispered, "Separation." Against Shizuo's lips. Then he walked away towards his house.

Shizuo felt the informant's warmth disappear from his fingertips but he smiled slightly, feeling relieved that Izaya's hadn't picked the first choice.

The informant ran back home, feeling a hole in his chest. He had stopped crying but it hurt so much to think about what he had done. Of course he still wanted to be with Shizuo and he had said that they were just separating for a while. _It's alright…I can go back to him._ He thought to himself. When he got back to his apartment, he sat down by his desk and started working. The brunette caught up with all his work just to get rid of the thoughts of the blonde, then he threw himself onto his bed knowing that Shizuo's scent would disappear from his room.

The blonde walked by himself to Shinra's apartment. When he got there, Celty answered the door and she immediately typed out, "How'd it go?"

Shizuo stepped into the apartment and explained what had happened, "We never made it there. He thought we were coming here and we had a problem. Things did not go according to the plan, we've separated for now. So for a while, I guess we won't be doing much."

The dullahan's shoulders drooped and she typed out, "But you planned it out so nicely and everything was perfect. I don't get how things went wrong."

"Apparently everything wasn't perfect." Shizuo muttered, "I didn't notice that with the amount of time I was taking to plan it, I was leaving him all alone. I'll just let him take some time to think."

Celty watched the blonde pull out a small box from his pocket. Shizuo gave a fake smile to Celty and said, "Next time."

_**Author's note:**_

_**I know this is a very short chapter. I just really wanted the chapter to end like that :3 Also, I felt like the tension had to break so I smoothed things out a bit. I don't want Shizuo getting mad at Izaya-chan ~ Not yet, at least. Heh….**_

_**Thank you for all your beautiful reviews, they make me a happy dumpling.**_


	10. Chapter 10

Days passed without the blonde being by his side. Eventually the days turned into long, hard weeks. Izaya had finally picked himself up and he was back to normal. The only thing that was different was that the two monsters of Ikebukuro didn't fight when they saw each other. The informant did his best to avoid the blonde while Shizuo did his best to protect Izaya without being noticed.

The brunette slowly opened his eyes and saw Shizuo staring at him, "What?! Shizu-chan, what are you doing here?!"

The blonde smiled, whispered a good morning and then leaned down for a kiss. Just before their lips touched, the illusion shattered. Shizuo disappeared and Izaya was left alone.

"Great…I'm hallucinating." Izaya mumbled to himself.

As he walked into the kitchen, he saw Shizuo standing in front of the stove wearing an apron. When that illusion shattered too, Izaya began to really miss the blonde. He sat alone while eating breakfast and muttered to himself, "I can't go back to Shizu-chan until I'm ready. I'm not going to cause any more trouble for him or for the people around me. So…until then…I have to endure it."

The informant prepared to go to work and then he felt someone's arms around his waist and Shizuo's voice whisper in his ear, "Come home safely." Izaya spun around to see no one behind him. The brunette felt an aching in his chest but he couldn't go back to Shizuo yet, no matter how much he missed him.

The blonde stared at himself in the mirror while buttoning up his dress shirt. He saw Izaya behind him sitting on the bed, laughing at how his buttoning was messed up. When the blonde turned, he was met with no one. Shizuo sighed and continued to get ready for his day. He ate breakfast by himself and then he heard Izaya yell, "Remember to put the dishes in the sink so I can clean them later!"

Shizuo smiled and lightly placed his dishes in the sink after he was done with them. Before leaving his apartment he reassured himself, "Izaya will come back to me, I know it. He's not going to forget me."

He locked the door behind him and walked into the streets of Ikebukuro to meet up with Tom and keep an eye on Izaya. As he passed the crowds of people, he felt a delicate hand hold his own. When he looked to his side, he saw Izaya who was cheerfully smiling and talking on and on about what he liked and disliked. Shizuo smiled and tried to hold the informant's hand tighter, only to clench a fist full of air. The blonde sighed and decided that he wouldn't push Izaya to hurry up and come back, no matter how much he missed him.

Izaya walked down the streets of Ikebukuro to meet up with a client of his. The client was someone he had given information to in the past (and had ruined his life), so Izaya tried his best to be prepared for whatever may happen. He wasn't much of a person who used guns, unless he had someone to do the dirty work for him; so he just carried around his usual pocketknives. The informant saw the blonde on one side of the street, walking towards him. Izaya couldn't figure out a way to avoid the debt collector so he just continued to walk forward, fearing that if he stayed to close to Shizuo, he would end up hugging him. The blonde noticed the informant but decided to not look in his eyes. The two passed each other as if they were strangers, but both were longing for each other.

Shizuo excused himself from work and quickly followed Izaya through the streets. He made sure to stay at least ten meters behind the informant, just in case the brunette turned around. Izaya twisted through many routes and finally got to a warehouse. He walked inside and noticed a man standing in the middle of the room.

"So, how may I help you?" The informant asked.

"I heard that you're dating the strongest man in Ikebukuro." The man said.

Shizuo leaned against the warehouse door to listen to their conversation.

"Yes, I am dating Shizuo. He has a name, you know." The brunette said calmly, "What do you want?"

"I want to ruin your life as much as you ruined mine." The man looked at Izaya with eyes filled with malice. The man's hand went to his pocket and so did Izaya's.

"So you plan on taking my life to ruin it?" Izaya asked.

"That's not enough torture. You have to feel more pain. What is it like to date that monster?"

"He's not a monster. What's there to tell about my relationship with him?" The informant seemed a little on edge as his fingers slid around his pocketknife.

"I just want to know, you know?" The man said with a playful smile.

"I don't." Izaya said bluntly.

The informant's past client moved forward a bit and asked, "Aren't you scared of him?"

The brunette browned at this, "No."

"Something is wrong with your relationship with him, I can tell." The man continued to shuffle closer while talking to Izaya.

When the brunette didn't say anything, the man continued, "Oh? I'm right? Well, that makes everything easier. You two must have gone through some trouble. Perhaps you should get a clue; Shizuo doesn't love you anymore. He let you go so easily. Don't you think people who loved you would hold on tighter?"

"You're lying." Izaya said, trying hard not to break, but his mask was falling.

"As much of a monster he is, he would never fall in love with a greater monster like you." The man continued to shatter Izaya and make him weak. Then he laughed and said, "You're full of holes, Orihara Izaya. Let me make some more."

The past client pulled his hands out of his pocket to reveal a gun. A loud noise pierced through the air. Izaya heard the loud noise but he was too stunned to register what had happened. He heard the warehouse door clam open and then saw Shizuo running towards him. The informant's hands covered his side and when he removed them, they were stained red. His past client ran off and Shizuo ignored him completely, only caring about Izaya's well-being.

Suddenly, all of Izaya's senses seemed to return at once. He gasped slightly as he felt the pain take over his body. The informant stumbled a bit, but was still able to limp towards Shizuo. The blonde caught Izaya in his arms and immediately ran towards Shinra's apartment.

"You're going to be okay, Izaya. I swear to god, if you sleep right now, I will slap you until you wake up. If you die right now, I'll kill you."

"Shizu-chan, that last one didn't make any sense…" Izaya muttered while holding onto Shizuo. The fact that they had separated flew out the window as the blonde sprinted through the crowds of people. He kicked the door open to Shinra's apartment and gently put Izaya on the bed.

"Shinra! Help!" The blonde yelled.

The underground doctor didn't need to ask what had happened, he got to work and started patching up Izaya. Shizuo stared at his hands which were covered in Izaya's blood, "Oh my god, Shinra, there's blood everywhere. Shinra…I…He…gun."

The doctor called for Celty and told her to calm SHizuo down and treat him out of shock. The dullahan washed away the blood from the debt collector's hands and sat him down on the couch.

When Shinra was done bandaging Izaya's wound, he let the blonde sleep by the informant's side. Izaya felt lost in his own mind and then he found his answer through a nightmare.

[**author: italics describe his nightmare, by the way]**

"_Shizu-chan?" Izaya called out into the darkness, "Shizu-chan? Where are you?"_

_The blonde's figure appeared in front of him but the informant was unable to move forward. Shizuo began walking away from him and no matter how much he screamed his name, the blonde wouldn't turn around._

"_Wait…Shizuo, don't leave me…please don't leave me." Izaya fell to his knees and was left alone in the darkness._

"_Shizuo, I miss you. I miss you so much. I'm ready to start again, so please! Please, I'm begging you, don't go somewhere I can't follow!"_

_He felt something warm touch his hand and Izaya heard someone calling his name._

"Izaya? Oi, are you awake? Please answer me."

"I'm awake, Shizu-chan…" The brunette mumbled softly.

The blonde stared at Izaya and smiled, "Why are you always the one who ends up on the hospital bed?"

The informant laughed a bit, but felt a stabbing pain on his left side where he had been shot, "That's because you're strong and I'm not."

Shizuo's hand covered Izaya's as they both leaned in for a kiss. Both of them didn't want to pull away, but eventually they needed air. Izaya muttered against Shizuo's lips, "I'm back." To which Shizuo responded with,

"Welcome home."

Izaya was ready to go back to Shizuo for good.


	11. Chapter 11

Shizuo worked hard to get Izaya up and running again. When the informant had healed completely, Shizuo figured it was time for an adventure.

That night, Shizuo held Izaya's small body as always and waited for him to fall asleep. When the blonde was sure that the informant was in a deep sleep, he slowly reached under his pillow to grab a black marker. Shizuo slowly took Izaya's hand and started to write something on it. When he was done, he admired his masterpiece and went back to sleep.

The next morning, Izaya stretched out his arms and then crawled out of bed, making sure not to wake his boyfriend. When he got to the bathroom, Izaya rubbed his eyes and noticed that his left hand had something black on it. The brunette inspected it a little closer and on his fourth finger, he saw the words, "Marry me?"

Izaya stood there frozen for a second, his face heated up as he stared at the words written on his ring finger. He ran out of the bathroom to tell Shizuo his answer but when he got to their bedroom; the blonde was gone.

On top of Shizuo's pillow was a small piece of paper that said, "Izaya, if you want to tell me you answer you have to go to Shinra's house."

The informant smiled at the note and quickly got dressed. He grabbed a sweater and ran out of his apartment to go to Shinra's.

When he got to the doctor's apartment, Shinra handed him a train ticket and told him to stay on until the second last stop.

Izaya made his way to the train station; he thought about the situation and realized that Shizuo was pretty much only a few minutes ahead of him. The blonde was there when he woke up, so the moment Izaya walked into the bathroom, Shizuo must have left.

While sitting on the train, Izaya stared at his ring finger and reread the words over and over again. When the train announced the second last stop, Izaya got off and look around for Shizuo. No one was there and the afternoon sun burned the pavement. The second last stop was a part of the countryside. A little girl approached Izaya and smiled, "You must be that man's boyfriend. Blondie told me to lead you somewhere. So…follow me!"

The little girl held Izaya's hand and dragged him off into a forest. As they walked deeper and deeper into the forest, the informant started to get worried.

"Um…Can you tell me where we're going?"

The little girl pouted and shook her head, "No can do. This is important for blondie, so I have to listen to him."

The brunette sighed and continued to follow the girl. They walked and walked for hours until Izaya was actually tired. The informant sat down on the ground and whined, "Too tired. I can't…"

"Oh, come one mister, you only need to go through those trees into an opening." The little girl tried to pull Izaya up despite her inferior strength. "I gotta home before the sun falls so you go through those trees and wait at the opening. Okay?"

"I should take you home, you might get lost." Izaya said.

"No, I'm fine. I know these woods like the back of my hand." The little girl said with a smile and then she ran off before the brunette could say anything else.

Izaya slowly got to his feet and walked towards the opening in the forest. In the opening, there was a huge lake. The water shimmered as the sun started setting and the long grass swayed whenever the wind blew. The informant was hoping to see the blonde but no one was there. Izaya sat down on the ground and watched the sun set. When the darkness finally fell before him, he waited a few minutes in silence. Then he heard rustling behind him, and he heard that person sit down behind him. Izaya's legs were pressed closely against his chest to keep himself from feeling cold, then he felt strong arms hold him from behind. The brunette didn't say anything and neither did the blonde.

All of the sudden, a small golden light flickered in the air. After that one, another golden light joined it. Eventually, millions of fireflies lit up the space in front of them. The glow was reflected in the water of the lake and it seemed like the universe was open to the couple.

Shizuo intertwined their fingers together and leaned his head onto Izaya's back for a second. Then he whispered in the informant's ear with a low voice, "Orihara Izaya, will you marry me?"

Izaya turned so that he was facing Shizuo; his whole body fit within the blonde's embrace. They were so close that their noses were touching. The brunette took a shaky breath and tried to form words, but all that came out was a small sob. Izaya buried his head into Shizuo's chest and cried softly. The blonde gently stroke his ahir and apologized for making him cry. When Izaya finally calmed down, the informant brushed his fingers against Shizuo's cheek, smiled and said,

"Yes, I'll marry you."

The blonde took out a small box and opened it to reveal two thin silver rings. Shizuo slid on onto Izaya's finger and the other onto his. Then he lightly kissed the informant.

Izaya smiled into the kiss and threw his arms around Shizuo to deepen the kiss. The blonde fell back onto the grass and wrapped his arms around Izaya's waist. After a while, they took the next train back to Ikebukuro to fall back on their bed and kiss again and again.

Both of them not being able to believe that such beauty was able to happen because of a small fever.

**Andddd that's the end guys. I'm kinda sad that this story ended. I really enjoyed reading the reviews about how you guys enjoyed it (does that make sense). What is life? Anyway. I'm not sure what to write about next now. Should I continue with Shizaya or go to like other places. I'm not sure. Thank you for following me on this journey. Thanks for all the support for people who are reading it now and for people who will read it in the future. I love you minna~**


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